Household spending on essentials has skyrocketed over the past five years, driven by inflation and shrinkflation, which makes products smaller yet more expensive. Since 2019, the amount spent on essentials globally has surged nearly 145%, jumping from $50 billion to an astonishing $122 billion in 2024.
This troubling trend shows no sign of slowing down, with projections indicating that consumers will spend a record $150 billion on essentials in 2025, a $30 billion increase from the previous year.
Households Set to Spend 22% More on Essentials in 2025 Compared to Last Year
The Statista data show that annual household spending had increased by an average of 25% between 2019 and 2021, with the market revenue hitting nearly $85 billion that year. The following two years brought a brief slowdown, with household spending rising by only 6% and 9%, respectively. But after this temporary dip, household essential prices started surging again.
Last year, the global household spending soared by 23% and hit $122.6 billion. Statistics show 2025 is on track for another 22% increase, bringing total spending to a record-breaking $150 billion. To put this into perspective, this massive $30 billion surge in just one year equals the market revenue reported in 2016 or 2017.
Statistics show this negative trend will affect all major markets and regions. However, China’s household essentials market is expected to grow the most, rising by 22.8%. The United States and Europe follow closely, with projected growth rates of 22.5% and 21.4% in 2025, respectively.
Household Spending Expected to Exceed $200 Billion by 2028
Although Statista’s forecast shows a slowdown in annual growth beginning in 2026, with the rate falling to 5% by 2028, the cumulative increase will still be massive.
With rising prices, shifting consumer habits, and economic pressures reshaping daily budgets, global spending on household essentials will soar to over $200 billion by 2028, growing by an average of $14 billion per year. This shocking figure not only raises the question of how much households will spend in years after that but also how they will adapt to an era of ever-rising costs.